"Dancing with the Stars" professional dancer Gleb Savchenko has filed an emergency child custody order, claiming his ex-wife has kept their two daughters in Hong Kong since 2023.
Savchenko shares daughters Olivia, 15, and Zlata, 8, with Elena Samodanova.
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According to legal documents obtained by TMZ, the girls moved to Hong Kong with their mother after the couple's divorce.
Savchenko alleges the move was only supposed to be temporary, with the children set to return to the United States by June 30, 2024.
He says Samodanova now refuses to send them back.
In the filing, Savchenko states that Samodanova signed a Post Judgment Agreement in 2023 allowing her to "temporarily" relocate the children to Hong Kong for one year for a work project.
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Instead, Savchenko claims Samodanova has "obtained permanent Hong Kong residency, enrolled the children in an expensive private school, got the children a cat, became engaged, and had another child with her fiancé."
He says these actions are an attempt to establish a life in Hong Kong without his permission.
Savchenko says he has been forced to travel to Hong Kong each year to visit his daughters, despite Samodanova's efforts to limit his access.
He is requesting the court grant him "temporary sole legal and sole physical custody" of Olivia, with no visitation for Samodanova, pending a scheduled hearing.
Savchenko claims Olivia, who is currently with him, does not want to return to Hong Kong and wants to live and attend school in Los Angeles.
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He says Olivia does not want to confront her mother after Samodanova allegedly called her a "disgrace" and made other abusive comments.
Savchenko also fears that if Olivia returns to Hong Kong, it could result in "international wrongful retention/abduction."
The dancer further alleges Samodanova took the children to Moscow and Vietnam against his wishes, including a 20-hour bus ride to a small village in Moscow without cell phones, despite his concerns about the ongoing war in Ukraine.
Savchenko is not currently seeking a custody order for Zlata, only for Olivia.
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A mediation session is scheduled for August 5, with a formal court hearing to follow.
